Desperate Jobseekers Doing Everything To Erase Their Criminal Pasts

As America settles into double-digit unemployment, more and more workers are trying to clear their background of any criminal wrongdoing as they step up the search for jobs:

WSJ: In Michigan, state police estimate they'll set aside 46% more convictions this year than last. Oregon is on track to set aside 33% more. Florida sealed and expunged nearly 15,000 criminal records in the fiscal year ended June 30, up 43% from the previous year. The courts of Cook County, which includes Chicago and nearby suburbs, received about 7,600 expungement requests in the year's first three quarters, nearly double the pace from the year before.

And those of you thinking that businesses will cut down on background check services as a cost-cutting measure are quite mistaken:

Some employers say background checks provide vital red flags at a time when liability fears run high. Workplace theft cost retailers $15.5 billion last year, according to the National Retail Federation. On-the-job violence costs billions in legal costs and lost work hours, says the Workplace Violence Research Institute, a California consulting firm.